Welcome to Quito, the capital of Ecuador! Arrive at the Mariscal Sucre International Airport (UIO), where your driver will meet you to transfer to your accommodation in the city center, a one-hour trip.

The entire city of Quito is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, standing at an altitude of 9,350ft (2,850m). It welcomes visitors with its picturesque plazas situated between mountain peaks. The city has an abundance of market stands, shamanistic healers, and fourth-generation hat makers, as well as a vibrant and sophisticated culinary and nightlife scene.

Overnight: Quito

Meals included: None

Today, after breakfast, your English-speaking guide will pick you up from your hotel and take you on a walking city tour.

The colonial center of Quito was already named world cultural heritage by UNESCO in 1978 and is home to many beautiful, historic buildings and squares. You will visit the Plaza Grande and the beautiful churches La Compañía and La Basílica, and walk down the oldest street of Quito—La Ronda.

Later on, accompanied by your guide, we will head to a cooking class venue, which is located inside a colonial house in the heart of Old Town Quito. Get ready for a packed day filled with incredible sights, tastes, and smells. And at the end of it all …. you will be able to enjoy the delicious meal you cooked.

Afterward, you will visit the equatorial monument, Mitad del Mundo, located just 26 km (16 miles) north of Ecuador’s capital city, Quito where French scientists determined the position of the central line many years ago. Ecuador is the place to come to stand on the Equator line, nowhere else on the planet is it easier to visit the Equator line or strike a pose with one foot in each hemisphere. Even Ecuador’s name was born of its location at latitude zero. You will vis

it the museum exhibits including a planetarium, ethnographic museum, art exhibits, a small-scale model of Quito city, an old train station, a beer museum, cocoa & chocolate exhibits, and a small chapel, for an unforgettable experience today.

Overnight: Quito

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch

Today, you will visit to the market of Otavalo. Otavalo features one of the most important traditional markets of South America. Here, the indigenous people of the surrounding areas gather to trade anything from animals over handicraft to fresh vegetables and fruits. Take a stroll through the streets and maybe try some of the local street food such as salted mango or fritada con mote, fried pork with cooked corn.

Afterwards, you will head to the small waterfall Peguche, formed by the river of the same name. This waterfall is considered as an indigenous ceremonial site. After visiting the waterfall, you could also stop by the local artisans who live and work in this area. For your overnight stay, you return to Quito.

Meals included: Breakfast

After breakfast, you head south to Cotopaxi National Park. You will visit Lake Limpiopungo as well as the El Salitre Inca ruins, located in the highlands of the park. Here, you will have a spectacular view of Cotopaxi Volcano's gigantic cone. Lake Limpiopungo offers a variety of birds, and occasionally even wild horses. A short walk around the lake will allow you to admire the Andean plant and animal life along the way. If time permits, hike up to the refuge to enjoy the view from above as well! In the afternoon you continue your journey to Baños where you will spend the night.

Meals included: Breakfast

Group type: Private group

Today you will leave Baños after breakfast and make your way to the impressive volcano Chimborazo. You should already be able to spot it several times along the way. If the altitude does not affect you, take a walk to the refuge Carrell at 4.800 m and enjoy the splendid view of the surrounding valleys and mountains.

Afterward, continue your journey towards Riobamba, a small Andean town where you will spend the night.

Meals included: Breakfast

Group type: Private group

Today, you will slowly continue your journey southwards. Enjoy the beautiful mountain scenery along the way, before making a stop at Ingapirca, one of the most important ruins from Pre-Inca times. Late afternoon, you will finally arrive in Cuenca, which is said to be one of the most beautiful cities in South America. Overnight stay in Cuenca.

Meals included: Breakfast

Group type: Private group

This morning, your guide will pick you up for a city tour. The beauty and colonial ambience of Cuenca is best experienced on foot. Our three to four hours Cuenca city tour weaves its way through the old town center, designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, to give you a short introduction to the city before heading to Turi to enjoy the incredible view.

The rest of the afternoon is at leisure. Overnight stay in Cuenca.

Meals included: Breakfast

Group type: Private group

Your first stop today is the beautiful Cajas National Park. This National Park comprises more than 200 interconnected high-altitude lagoons. The Cajas is not only source of many rivers, but even connects to the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean. You have some time to enjoy the view from the lookout or to take a short walk to one of the many lagoons. Afterwards, you continue your journey westwards and stop at a Hacienda where you will get to know the process of chocolate making and where you can have a delicious, local lunch. In the afternoon, you will drive through lush vegetation until reaching Ecuador's biggest city, Guayaquil. Overnight stay in Guayaquil.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch

Group type: Private group

Today you are going on a city tour, starting with a visit to the Seminario Park, a very popular meeting point for young Ecuadorian lovers. Furthermore this little park is well-known for its land iguanas which laze about in the trees while they catch the sun. We will visit the Cathedral, built in classical gothic style and then we move on to Guayaquil’s famous wide, tree-lined waterfront, “el Malecon”, that runs alongside the river Guayas. Next stop will be the historic local government buildings, the “Palacio Municipal” and then the “Palacio de Gobernacion” (the Government Palace). Right in front of this palace is the Moorish clock tower “La Torre Morisca”, which was built in 1843, and with a little effort climbing its steep stairs, we can enjoy the views across the city. La Rotonda, another historic monument, is a statue that marks the meeting between Simon Bolivar and Jose San Martin in 1822. The old district of Las Peñas, a vestige of old Guayaquil to the north end of the Malecon, is a picturesque neighbourhood built on the Cerro Santa Ana hill on the edge of the river. Climbing the stairway amid the brightly painted wooden houses, you will gain a different perspective of Ecuador’s largest city.

Meals included: Breakfast

Group type: Private group

After breakfast, you will board a small yacht in the fishing village of Puerto Lopez which will take you to the amazing Island "Isla de la Plata" (Silver Island) in the Pacific Ocean. The name (Silver Island) derives from the local legend that Sir Francis Drake buried some treasure here – also it is said to be Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island. The island is part of the Machalilla National Park and sea lions, and blue-footed boobies are amongst the main characters to be viewed. You can also observe frigate birds, red-footed and masked boobies, waved albatross, and tropicbirds among others. After a walk around the island’s guided trail, there will be time to explore beneath the ocean while you snorkel.

From mid-June to mid-October humpback whales can often be sighted on the journey to and from the island.

In the afternoon, you will be transferred back to Guayaquil where you're going to spend the night.

Overnight stay in Puerto Lopez

Meals included: Breakfast

Group type: Private group

The Machalilla National Park extends over 55000 hectares and is concerned with preserving marine ecosystems as well as the dry tropical forest and archaeological sites on shore. After breakfast we recommend a visit to Agua Blanca (not included). This little village has an archaeological museum explaining the excavation of the Manteño site, which is about a half-hour walk through tropical dry forest away. After the visit you could continue to the nearby beach - Los Frailes, said to be the most beautiful beach of the Ecuadorian coast. Later you have the chance to explore the pleasant little fishing town Puerto Lopez. This pleasant little fishing town (population 14000) is beautifully set in a horseshoe bay, with a broad sweep of beach enclosed by headlands to the North and South. It’s interesting to watch the arrival of the local fishermen in the morning and evening – the fish are gutted on the spot and the air is full of wheeling frigate birds trying to grab the scraps.

Meals included: Breakfast

Group type: Private group

After breakfast and a last stroll through Puerto Lopez, you will be brought back to Guayaquil and dropped off at the airport for your connecting flight.

Meals included: Breakfast

Group type: Private group

In the morning, you will have some time in a hotel to refresh yourself and be ready to take the international Flight. End of services.

Meals included: Breakfast

Group type: Private group